Photo of pupil deprived of canteen seat by adults goes viral

PETALING JAYA: A photo of a pupil eating his food while squatting on a school canteen floor has gone viral.

What’s so special about this photo? The boy is squatting because he has no seat at the canteen table. And the reason he has no seat is that adults – parents of some of the pupils – have occupied the seats meant for pupils.

According to a report in The Star, the sight of the boy eating alone while squatting on the floor prompted teacher Mohd Fadli Salleh to write about it on his Facebook page.

“It is not for parents to sit down and tend to their own children, depriving other students of the space,” Fadli was quoted as saying by mStar Online.

Fadli said, as a general rule, parents were not allowed to sit on canteen chairs unless there was excess seating. This rule, he said, had been communicated to the parents during the orientation session.

“Some schools give parents permission to accompany their children at the beginning of the school term, including spending break time with them,” he said. This, he said, was understandable as some children might not be used to buying food, calculating the cost and the change to be received.

Fadli said more than one pupil might have been forced to eat his or her meal on the floor.

He said: “Parents, imagine your children not being able to eat during their break. The children come back from school complaining that they are hungry because canteen seats were full due to visiting parents.

“Surely you will be angry and sad. That is what you feel, and that is what other students feel when they are made to go hungry,” Fadli was quoted as saying in the report.

“So when it is crowded, do not sit down, just stand near the table,” he added.

The Star report did not identify the school or its location. -FMT